Numbers reveal Suryakumar Yadav’s struggles against pace in T20Is in 2025 — analysing the technical and tactical reasons behind it.
Suryakumar Yadav’s “Not out of form, but out of runs” phrase had become quite common over recent months. India’s T20I captain expressed it during the Asia Cup 2025 post-tournament press conference in September. He repeated the same phrase during the post-match presentation of the third T20I against South Africa in Dharamshala.
After yet another failure in Ahmedabad that capped a torrid 2025 in T20Is, Suryakumar Yadav began to publicly acknowledge his struggles. “Maybe the only thing we couldn’t quite manage was finding ‘Surya the batter’ – I think he went missing somewhere,” he admitted after the fifth T20I against South Africa. This lean patch, however, is not merely a sense of déjà vu; it follows a discernible pattern in the manner of his recent dismissals.
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With T20 World Cup round the corner, Surya's form is a bigger concern for India's than Gill's. India has many opening options but a designated captain can't be replaced.
— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) December 14, 2025
Pace bowling exposes cracks in Suryakumar Yadav’s T20I form in 2025
On December 19, in India’s final T20I before the T20 World Cup 2026 squad announcement, Suryakumar Yadav managed just five runs off seven balls. The dismissal extended his drought of T20I half-centuries to 22 innings, a run that began against South Africa in Durban last year. Across this period, he had accumulated only 244 runs at a modest average of 12.84 and a strike rate of 117.87, underlining the depth of his prolonged slump.
In Ahmedabad, Surya backed himself to take on Corbin Bosch by trying to clear the infield off a length delivery on the rise. However, his bat twisted in his hands, resulting in another soft dismissal as he picked out David Miller in the deep.
It’s right that anyone is bound to go through rough patches in the T20 format, especially in India’s free-minded approach. But Surya has continuously swept the issue under the carpet. His latest record against pace gives an ominous sign.
Since the beginning of 2025, the Mumbai-born has managed only 125 T20I runs in 114 balls against pacers in 18 innings. His average of 8.3 comes at a strike rate of only 109.6 with 15 dismissals along with a dot pc of 52.6.
Meanwhile, in the same period, he has enjoyed a superb record against spinners with 92 T20I runs in 62 balls. His average goes north to 92 with a strike rate of 148.4, besides only one dismissal in nine innings.
Breaking down the type of pacers gives a clear picture of Surya’s slump. Against left-arm pacers in 2025, he has notched up just seven T20I runs in 21 balls in six innings. His average drops down to 2.3 with a strike rate of 33.3.
On the other hand, against the right-arm pacers, he has bagged 118 runs at an average of 9.8 in that same period. India’s T20I captain has been dismissed 12 out of 17 times at a strike rate of 126.90.
It marks a new phase of struggle in Surya’s career. In 2023, he averaged 35.6 against pace in T20Is, scoring 463 runs at a blistering strike rate of 176.7, fuelled by 33 sixes and 42 boundaries. That output dipped last year, when he managed 293 runs at an average of 20.9. In the ongoing season, however, the problem has deepened, with his difficulties against pace beginning to take a visible toll on his overall returns.
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Suryakumar Yadav trapped in his 360-degree mode against pacers
Suryakumar Yadav announced himself in T20Is with a delightful pull shot over backward square leg off Jofra Archer. In the same innings, he repeatedly used the pace of the bowlers to glide the ball behind the wicket, establishing strokes that would soon become his trademarks – along with the audacious drive on the up over long-off. Those shots once defined his dominance in the format, but they have been conspicuously absent from his recent T20I innings.
Most of his dismissals have been around a weak drive in the air, caught at mid-off, or losing balance in straight drives. During the Asia Cup 2025 final, he lost his shape while looking to chip Shaheen Afridi through covers. He failed to transfer his weight into the shot, as the same issue was evident in the first T20I of the recent series vs South Africa.
During his last T20I fifty – a 35-ball 75-run knock against Bangladesh in October 2024, Surya scored against pacers in all directions. But he hasn’t been able to repeat the same feat in the last 12 months. Given his failure to transfer weight, Surya has been unsuccessful in generating power and getting the desired degree of elevation. He has perhaps been lifting his head a little too early to lose the shape of his shots.
It is increasingly evident that an average below 13 in 2025 reflects more than just a temporary dip in form for India’s T20I captain. The prolonged lack of runs will be a growing concern for the team management as they head into the home series against New Zealand, followed closely by the T20 World Cup 2026. Suryakumar is set to have five T20Is against the Kiwis, along with a couple of warm-up games, to rediscover rhythm before India’s opening fixture against the United States of America.
That said, it would be unwise to write off one of India’s greatest-ever T20 batters. However, if the struggles persist, the management may need to consider easing the burden on the 35-year-old by relieving him of the leadership role and handing it to Hardik Pandya. The upcoming T20I series against New Zealand, beginning on January 21 in Nagpur, could prove pivotal in reshaping several equations ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026 set to begin on February 7.
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